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Sunday, February 12, 2012

The War on Homebrewing

There is a battle going on
in Wisconsin that could have serious consequences for the craft beer industry
across the country. It should surprise no one that the large brewing
corporations are lashing out in different ways as they slowly start to lose
market share to a rising craft beer industry and a resurgent spirits scene.

This latest fight is about
homebrewing, first a little background. On the federal level, homebrewing was legalized when President Jimmy Carter signed it into law in 1978. The basics were
such; any individual above legal drinking age could brew up to 100 gallons a
year, 200 gallons per household if it had two or more occupants of legal age.
You could not sell it, but you could transport it. It was the sweeping away of
another Prohibition relic. While it was legal on the federal level, the states
still had the right to restrict as they saw fit.

This was never really an
issue in Wisconsin until this last year when the Wisconsin Department of
Revenue took a look at the state law and declared that homebrewers could not
transport any alcohol from where it was brewed. That effectively
killed any homebrew tasting events or other gatherings. What hadn’t been an issue
for years was now illegal. Keep in mind that transportation is legal
at the federal level.

To remedy that issue, Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, introduceda bit of common sense legislation to adjust that. It made it through Senate
committee without even a peep. Now though it has been blown out of proportion
in the Assembly with the Wisconsin Beer Distributors Association and the
Wisconsin Wine and Spirit Institute throwing a fit about how this will be
outside of state regulation on distribution.

But what is really going on here? I
believe this is a bit more nefarious and here is why. This latest salvo from
the macro beer industry is just a ruse; they are using the regulation / safety
issue to mask their real intent which is to dismantle the training ground of
their biggest threat, the craft beer movement. Allow me to explain.

How many times have we heard
from craft brewers that they got their start as a homebrewer? I’d argue that a
majority of the successful crafts today did exactly that. It even matches up
with the timeline since legalization. You need to master your skills before you
can go pro. If you were a good homebrewer you were able to grow a grassroots
audience through friends, and word of mouth. Tasting events allowed for greater
exposure to a larger audience. Like most things the cream rose to the top and
some of the best homebrewers or ones who had cultivated a loyal following did
turn pro. Homebrewing is the breeding ground to great beer and serves as the
minor leagues for craft beer industry.

For the macros this was just
an annoyance at first, they had grown complacent and were only willing to spar
against the other heavyweights. Now though they are seeing market share drain
away and that is causing a panic. For a bit more detail on the specifics go
check out these links for how much, how fast, for how long, and to whom.

Instead of meeting the craft
beer movement on a “fair” playing field by brewing better beer, the Bigs are taking
the path of least resistance, in this case through legislation and regulation. They
are already playing the distribution card (see below); this is just another angle of attack
for them. What better way to curtail your competition than to hamstring their
training ground.

If they win here I guarantee
they will start doing similar things in other states through the legislative
process. Even more worrisome is that they have the money and the lobbying
expertise to do this. The craft beer industry is not prepared for this fight
and homebrewers weren’t even expecting it. The irony is that the craft beer industry and homebrewing's greatest strength, its diversity and lack of centralization, is also one of it's biggest weaknesses when it comes time to politically organize.

Following on the heels of
the beer distribution law passed last year this shouldn’t surprise anyone,
particularly with Gov. Scott Walker running the show. He has already shown his
cards as a corporate stooge. It is a damn shame this is happening in a state
that had such a vibrant beer culture.

Want to take a stand? Get
smart on the homebrew laws in your state and get involved. If you are in Wisconsin, call up your
state representative or state senator and let them know your side of the story. Folks, this is only the start of long, hard fight between giant corporations who have lost their way and individuals who want to make something better and different.

2 comments:

You had me until the "corporate stooge" comment. This issue crosses party lines, and if you were seriously paying attention, you would have noticed that. My WI Senator, who voted in favor of the beer distribution law, is a co-sponsor of the Homebrewing legislation. Gov. Walker has not even commented on it yet, and defers to the legislature. Wait to see what Walker does before you scorn him, on this issue.

Patrick, thanks for stopping by and commenting, I appreciate it. You are correct, this issue does cross party lines and I believe it as common sense legislation.

But, I will stand by my comment about Gov. Walker, no he has not weighed in yet which is unfortunate because here is an issue that he could have gotten some easy positive press.

I will argue that the passage of the beer distribution law shows that the current administration in the mansion is not looking out for the small brewer and that it will have negative long term ramifications for the craft brewing industry in Wisconsin.

I really hope I'm wrong but we will see. Once again thanks for stopping by.